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Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1997
42Access to register
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42 Access to register
(1) A person may apply to the registrar-general for—
(a) access to the register; or
(b) the provision from the register of the information stated in the
(2) The registrar-general may give the applicant access to the register, or
give the applicant any of the stated information that is available, if
satisfied that—
(a) the applicant has an adequate reason for wanting the access or
the information; and
(b) the giving of the access or information is in accordance with the
statement of policies under section 46.
(3) However, the registrar-general must not give the access to any part of
the register, or any information in the register, that would disclose—
(a) the manner of death of a deceased person; or
(b) that a manner of death was recorded for a deceased person.
Note 1 The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2024, s 82 (3) requires notice to be
given to the registrar-general about the manner of death of a deceased
person.
Note 2 The registrar-general must give the Voluntary Assisted Dying Oversight
Board information about a death (including any recorded manner of
death) in certain circumstances (see Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2024,
s 123).
(4) The access or information—
(a) must be given subject to the conditions stated in the statement
of policies under section 46; and
Access to, and certification of, register entries Division 7.3
(b) may be given subject to any other conditions that are reasonable
and necessary to protect the privacy of anyone to whom an entry
in the register relates.
(5) In deciding, for subsection (2) (a), whether an applicant has an
adequate reason, the registrar-general must have regard to—
(a) the nature of the applicant’s interest; and
(b) the sensitivity of the information to be accessed or provided; and
(c) the use to be made of the information.
(6) The registrar-general may also have regard to any other relevant
consideration.
(7) In this section:
information does not include information that may be applied for
under section 43.